PA Statehood Bid Submitted to UN Sub-committee

The PA's unilateral statehood bid has been submitted to a 15-member Security Council sub-committee for further debate.

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Elad Benari, Canada, 28/09/11 21:14

PA Chairman Mahmoud Abbas

Israel news photo: Flash 90

The Palestinian Authority’s request for statehood at the United Nations moved to the next level on Wednesday, after the UN Security Council unanimously approved to transfer the request to a sub-committee for further examination.

According to a report on Israel’s Channel 10 News, the sub-committee will be made up of representatives from the 15 members of the Security Council. It will review the request and submit conclusions in a few weeks’ time.

The report noted that the sub-committee will first meet to discuss the bid on Friday, adding that such requests usually take a period of up to 35 days to discuss but that in this case it will likely take longer.

Meanwhile, the PLO’s Observer in the United Nations, Riyad Mansour, welcomed the move and expressed hope that the process will be expedited.

“We are grateful to the Security Council for promoting our request,” Mansour was quoted as saying after the meeting at the UN headquarters in New York. “The process is advancing step by step and we hope that the Security Council will bear the responsibilities it faces and approve our request.”

In contrast, Israel’s Ambassador to the UN, Ron Prosor, said that Israel is once again calling on the PA’s leadership to return to direct negotiations which will discuss all core issues.

“A real and lasting Palestinian state will not be achieved by the force of external factors, but only through direct negotiations,” stressed Prosor.

Prosor added that the Israeli government has not yet arrived at a final decision on whether to agree to the timetable for negotiations presented last week by the Middle East Quartet. Earlier on Wednesday it was reported that the Israeli Cabinet is likely to accept the timetable.

In any case, Prosor stressed that the plan to build 1,100 new housing units in the Gilo neighborhood of Jerusalem should not be an obstacle to negotiations.

“Everything on the table, everything is negotiable, but the Palestinians use every excuse to avoid negotiations,” he was quoted as saying.

(Arutz Sheva’s North American Desk is keeping you updated until the start of Rosh Hashanah in New York. The time posted automatically on all Arutz Sheva articles, however, is Israeli time.)